There needs to be someone who can lead you in the right direction.

Radio makes it appear like you can get some sounds in a laptop and be the next dude. Those careers don't really last.

Having the savvy to know what you want to say, how you want to say it, and what music you want to say it over comes with time spent and wisdom gained in a music career.

The battle thing is very important in hip-hop, but at the same time, I want to sit down and have a beer and listen to Rakim.

Man, I would demand that artist come to the table with better variety. I would demand that musicians know music history, not just Hip-Hop, so that we could understand. The better your 'listening ear' is, the better your music will be.

There's a need for pop. There's a need for radio. There's also a need to understand the brilliance and the depth of jazz and soul - and what hip-hop can be at its most brilliant and what hip-hop can be at its most simplistic.

I'm doing what's in my heart at the time.